


a guide for the recently deceased.

by chocobrosvevo



Category: Final Fantasy XIII, Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII
Genre: Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-25
Updated: 2016-08-25
Packaged: 2018-08-11 00:01:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 592
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7866898
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chocobrosvevo/pseuds/chocobrosvevo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>a mini-pamphlet on the etiquette of traversing a vast sea of chaos while coping with your death. written by caius ballad.</p>
            </blockquote>





	a guide for the recently deceased.

**Author's Note:**

> hi don't read this

First off, I welcome you to the cycle of reincarnation. Your death will not be for long, so rest well and rest assured. Your rebirth will come shortly. Meanwhile, I have penned this guide of sorts to help ease the restlessness that you may feel while you await your rebirth.

There are 5 things I wish to impart with you on the etiquette of coping with your death and subsequent revival that I, as a shepard of souls, feel is necessary in traversing this sea of chaos smoothly and efficiently. 

1\. Stay calm. 

The method in which you have come to this world may be painful—there are numerous ways to pass on, of which I will enumerate later—but please remain certain that no pain shall come to you here. As for the path in which you have died, no traces shall follow you in this domain. Old age, disease, suicide, and murder do not have a place here. You shall be restored to the optimum condition of your body in your past life to ease your journey. 

2\. Accept your death. 

It is not easy to leave your past life behind. Believe me, I am quite aware of this fact. You may not carry the memories of your past life into your new one, but know this: they will remain in the hearts and souls of everyone you have ever met. You may meet them again or you may not. Trust in the wheel of fate and carve your own path, one that is inordained by the gods that have ceased to exist. We made sure of it. 

3\. Cease your regrets.

It is not unusual to encounter souls filled to the brim with regret. Quite common, in fact. Perhaps you were inaffectionate to your loved ones or lived your life with an ineffable morosity enough to rival the most ancient of Paddran tragedies. If your previous incarnation was not up to par with what you would have liked, then perhaps this next one could be? The choice is yours to make.

4\. Trust in yourself.

I have learned over the past millenia in the old world that having doubts can corrupt you. I was given a gift—which I deemed and still deem a curse—of endlessly living to witness the reincarnation of the beloved seeress of my home. It is quite ironic that I am still fulfilling this odd role of a guardian but it is the atonement for my sin, one that I believe cannot be justified by even my death. And yet in this hour, I still believe I had done the right thing. I believed in myself that I could kill a goddess—the goddess of death herself. And I did. And I ushered the dawn of the new world that you have lived in. Perhaps being a reckless old man wasn't such a bad thing, eh?

5\. Live.

You are lucky to have been blessed with the opportunity of reincarnating into this new world. Some of us were not so fortunate. Nonetheless, your journey through this sea of chaos is close to an end by now and yet through all of the advices that I have mentioned, this last one that I will impart I believe is one that you should strictly abide by. You must live. Do not wallow in despair. Do not wish for death. Live. 

I wish you well in this life. And the next. I will be here to wait and welcome you until then. Go forth and be brave.

**Author's Note:**

> i warned you


End file.
